Two days after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau forgot to mention Alberta during a Canada Day speech on Parliament Hill, some Albertans are still showing their rage on social media.

Trudeau named every province and territory during the speech, and apologized after he realized the mistake he’d made.

“I’m a little embarrassed, I got excited somewhere over the Rockies,” Trudeau told the crowd. “Alberta, I love you.”

 

 

A social media expert says the reaction was over the top.

“As a social media expert who has just written a book on this issue, it really struck me how quickly people are to pounce on somebody who legitimately makes a mistake,” Wade Sorochan said. “The reaction afterwards really struck me … People are using [social media] now more than ever for venting anger and being very disrespectful to people.”

Memes are seen as harmless fun, but users are beginning to face repercussion when crossing the line. Last month, an Edmonton blogger was charged with promoting hatred after threatening Trudeau, police said.

“It’s a great tool for expressing opinions, but when it crosses the line into actually personal attacks, I think that’s when we need to step back and think about what we’re actually posting,” Sorochan said. “I think we’re going to see more repercussions to people’s actions online, whether it be cyberbullying, whether it be, you know, hatred – anything like that. I think we’re starting now to realize we’re going to hold these people accountable.”

Some Albertans are not just mad online, though. They see Trudeau’s omission as a slight against the province.

“I thought it was ridiculous that the Prime Minister forgot the name of one of the most important provinces in the country,” Stuart Kinney told CTV News.

For others, it was just a harmless oversight.

“I didn’t vote for the guy, but whatever, it was just a stupid mistake,” Stephanie Blitz said.

With files from Taylor Oseen